Couple's bid to adopt backfires

Rome - An Italian couple's adoption bid went awry when they said in their application that they did not want "dark-skinned" children, reports said on Tuesday.

An appeal court in Sicily ruled that the couple were unfit to adopt children of any description, the report said.

A child protection agency took the couple to court after they submitted an application in Catania, eastern Sicily, saying they were "prepared to take in up to two children... regardless of sex or religion, but... not with dark skin."

The court ordered a magistrate who reviews adoption requests to ignore such specifications, then took things a step further, ruling that any such "racist" couple should not be allowed to adopt at all.